“I managed the project production team and project consultants, and I worked with owners and end-users to achieve the desired outcome,” he says. He led projects from small renovations of facilities and departments to new construction within hospitals, medical centers and physician office buildings. He then joined Anderson Mikos Architects, where he worked for nearly two decades and ultimately became a senior project architect.Īt Anderson Mikos, Meyer managed healthcare design projects from inception to completion, including working with designers and planners. There, Meyer worked on all phases of design and construction for high-end residential developments for nearly six years. He stayed for a few years before he moved on to a residential firm, Parsons & Associates. The career of a lifetimeĪfter attending community college in his hometown, Meyer graduated with a degree in architecture from Southern Illinois University and quickly took his first job with Jensen & Fore Architects, working mainly on retail shopping centers. “We’re renovating about three to six rooms at a time, and we’re working with the department managers to figure out what work we can do now and what we can do next,” he says. Windows are also being upgraded to more energy-efficient models. All the lights are being changed to LED bulbs for increased efficiency and reduced operating cost, and exterior walls are receiving additional insulation. Meyer says everything is being upgraded and updated, including plumbing fixtures. You have to provide a visual impact on people when they walk into the building.”Īnother project underway is the multi-year upgrade of 129 patient rooms within the hospital. “Even things like the front lobby-there’s an emphasis on technology and hospitality. “It’s become so competitive between hospitals,” he adds. More treatment rooms and upgraded imaging equipment are nice, Meyer says, but people typically don’t choose a specific facility simply because of those improvements. The facility needed to maintain critical patient services, as well as a functioning main entry. It wasn’t completed all at once because the work was in one of the most sensitive areas of the hospital. Rush Copley recently completed a large main entrance expansion and the addition of new operating rooms during a four-phase project. “I think there will be changes to designs as well as HVAC systems, compared to the way it was pre-COVID,” he says. Providing flexibility in space planning will be an important aspect of future designs to provide a safe environment for both patients and staff, Meyer explains. He has also taken a closer look at what future work will look like at Rush Copley Medical Center because of the pandemic. “This will free up space in our lower level for other growth, including an improved laboratory, expanded pharmacy and expansion of the hospital’s support services,” Meyer says. The project will hopefully start sometime in 2021, pending fiscal decisions, he says, and it’s important for many reasons. That work entails building a new, 6,900-square-foot conference center with six conference rooms, new restrooms and other functions that allow for flexible use of the spaces. When Meyer spoke to Blueprint in late 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic had halted a lot of the work he had planned for Rush Copley, including a major project that had already been sent out to bid. “I still get to practice architecture, but I can focus on the aspects I enjoy the most-design, problem-solving and construction.” The work never stops “Making the move from an architectural office to working in health care has been a satisfying move,” he notes. “I couldn’t wait to move beyond the local restrictions, and I knew I had to expand my horizon,” Meyer says.įast forward 37 years and Meyer just completed his 31st year in architecture, the last three as the project, construction and property management coordinator for the 210-bed Rush Copley Medical Center in Aurora, Illinois, outside of Chicago. He’d re-imagine the floorplan so an extra bathroom would be added or move things around so his bedroom would be bigger.Įarly in his high school days, he unsurprisingly expressed an interest in architecture, but was told by locals that there was no work of that sort in his town. Total number of ED visits who were seen on the previous calendar day who had a visit related to COVID-19 (meets suspected or confirmed definition or presents for COVID diagnostic testing – do not count patients who present for pre-procedure screening).Bruce Meyer | Project, Construction and Property Management CoordinatorĪs a young child growing up in rural Illinois, Meyer would sit at a small table with paper, a pencil and a ruler, drawing his family’s house.
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